Five minutes of tears washed away four months of dreams.
In September, UF junior left fielder Francesca Enea was, once again, diagnosed with a torn ACL in her right knee.
The doctor wanted her to undergo surgery and forgo her junior season.
"I started to cry because I'm a crybaby, and after he saw me cry, he said, 'Well let's get an MRI and see how it looks just to see what you can do,'" Enea said.
The meniscus wasn't torn, which meant Enea could play on it, but the doctor warned her about further damaging the knee if she chose not to sit out.
For the second time in her college career, Enea had to decide whether or not to play on a torn ACL.
UF coach Tim Walton tried to educate her on the pros and cons of playing and redshirting, but the decision was hers.
"Really, she gave me the options," Walton said. "She said, 'There's no way that I'm not playing this season,' and that was it."
The Gators start their schedule Feb. 6 when Baylor comes to Gainesville for a three-game series. Enea will be penciled in for her usual spot in the lineup - batting fourth and playing left field. She will wear a brace on her right knee for the first time since her freshman season.
Hard Times
During fall practice, Enea and the rest of the outfielders took part in a drill designed to work on throwing runners out. Walton hit a deep fly ball, and Enea got under it, readying herself to fire the ball to whichever base the runner was heading.
"When I hit the ball to her in the outfield, it was just a routine drill, and she made a funny move, and I immediately got this feeling in the pit of my stomach that said she just tore her ACL," Walton remembered. "She finished practice, went about her day, hit and didn't say another word."
Enea went through a normal week of workouts on her sore knee before deciding to get an MRI. It was then the doctor told her she had a partial tear of the ACL. And after those five minutes of crying, he told her she could continue to play without missing any time if she wore a brace. It was a familiar trade-off for Enea, who played the second half of her freshman season with a support on her knee.
That first injury occurred after she collided with former UF pitcher Stacey Stevens going for a pop-up near first base. Given a similar choice, Enea decided to postpone surgery and took the necessary month off before returning to the field.
The now second-team All-American finished her freshman season with a .227 average and just six home runs before going under the knife June 6, 2007 - a date Enea remembers exactly when asked about her surgery.
"It was a learning experience for me, and I always keep that year in the back of my mind to remind me how bad I could do," she said.
In addition to her on-the-field struggles, the Woodland Hills, Calif., native was having a hard time fitting in with her teammates. They thought she was too girly and teased her for putting on makeup before practices and games.
"I didn't know how to cope with the injury and cope with the transitional stage," Enea said. "I loved all my teammates, but I was new and I wasn't that close with any of them. Even before the injury, I was having problems trying to fit in.
"With all those things going on and being so far away from home, it was really hard for me to try to figure out who I was at the time. I think it all came down on softball, and I put a lot of pressure on myself."
Finding Herself
Enea spent the off-season rehabbing and returned to school ready to make her sophomore year memorable for the right reasons. The Gators won an NCAA-record 70 games behind ace pitcher Stacey Nelson and the most explosive offense in school history. Enea was right in the middle of that lineup and finished the season hitting .336 with 17 home runs and 64 RBIs.
UF's cleanup hitter had become the player everyone thought she would be, and the team chemistry seemed to build itself.
In the biggest home series of the season, UF swept LSU, breaking an 11-game losing streak to the Tigers. After the final 7-0 win, Enea fielded questions about the two-run home run she blasted and the bright sun in left field. She explained the long ball humbly, saying that she got lucky and hit it over the fence.
As for the sun? Tan lines, not line drives, were the biggest problem.
Enea was still the same girly-girl, but her teammates now embraced her bubbly personality.
"Now they ask me, 'Franny, do you have eyeliner I can borrow?'" she said. "Well, what do you want? I have all different kinds."
Ready to Lead
The close-knit team of a year ago is returning every player except for one - right fielder Mary Ratliff, who was the team's emotional leader.
Their historic 2008 run has carried excitement and expectations into 2009. The Gators are ranked No. 1 in the nation and expected to follow up last season's Women's College World Series semifinal loss with a national championship.
"I just couldn't miss out on this season," Enea said. "We're projected to win the World Series. I just can't see myself sitting on the bench not participating. It's just too weird."
It's that kind of attitude that makes Ratliff confident the team won't miss a beat in her absence. Enea's hard work and determination to stay on the field is motivational to a team looking to avoid an untimely fall from grace.
"With Francesca, the only way you find out she's injured is somebody telling you - like a doctor's diagnosis - because she's not really somebody who lets it slow her down," Ratliff explained. "She doesn't let it get to her mentally. She hasn't taken any days off, and she doesn't expect any kind of special treatment. She's ready to play and ready to get through it again this season."
Walton describes his junior slugger as a fierce competitor who will "run through the wall to catch the ball" if it means helping her team win. He admitted the ACL injury likely kept Enea from superstar production during her freshman year, but he hasn't seen any signs that she has taken a step back this time around.
If Enea were to re-injure her knee and found herself unable to play, Ratliff knows she would still be a huge contributor.
"Something that is overlooked is how she helps out teammates," Ratliff said. "She's the first one to be there to hug somebody or tell them that it's OK. She's someone who likes to take care of other people, no matter who it is - older, younger, best friend, somebody she doesn't talk to a lot - she's always looking to help out. It doesn't matter who you are, she wants to make sure you're doing well on a personal level."
For five minutes, her statistical production was in doubt.
Her value to the team never was.
